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Physiological Traits
Skin In a nutshell, it is safe to say that the northern and the western people have a fairer skin than the rest of the world. To the north, the weather is slightly colder and The Bright One's rays are considerably milder. To the west, even though summer can be quite warm, people are more inclined to stay indoors or under a roof of some sort. That is a cultural aspect of their people, who believe that a fair skin indicates a cultured person, that has spent more time educating herself than working the field. The same is not true of the northerners, however, who are often indifferent to skin colouration (which, however, does not mean that they do not hold prejudice against people from other kingdoms). Southerners and easterners, on the other hand, tend to be tanned. In the south, even women are tanned, but in the east that is not so, since their females enjoy fewer liberties than their southern neighbors. As a matter of fact, having a fair skin, among the ashlanders, is an indication that a woman has been kept indoors, which increases the odds of her being a maiden before marriage. For that reason, all high-born women are raised that way in the west. For men, conversely, not being tanned is a sign of sloth and weakness. Southerners, however, do not usually differentiate people on grounds of skin pigmentation. Finally, it is said that The Ring was originally occupied by a tribe of dark-skinned people. This might very well be true, since this region does indeed hold a large number of men and women fitting that description. Their social standing is as varied as the degree of pigmentation in their skin, for, while some prefer to marry other dark-skinned people, others have taken partners with a fairer complexion. Hair In Whitestone, there is a predominance of chestnut, auburn and red hair, but blond and light brown hair are also present to a lesser degree. Black hair is quite rare there. Most people have usually straight and flowing hair, but among redheads a coarser variety is also quite frequent. Women tend to wear their hair long and free, with tiaras or some other sort of adornment. Men wear it both long and short, the latter being more common among adults. In Seaside, the colour of people's hair is predominantly black or tending to a darker shade of brown. Its texture is coarse more often than not. Due to the heat and to their seafaring activities, men are prone to wear their hair short, while women tend to let it grow out in beautiful long curls, whose locks they sometimes tie up in intricate arrangements. In Ashland, hair hue is also predominantly black, but, unlike their southern neighbors', it is usually very straight and flowing. For that reason, perhaps, men keep it very short. Some say that it is because male ashlanders have such pretty hairs that they are afraid to look like girls. Women, on the other hand, are prone to let their hair grow very long and wear it loose, with very discreet adornments if any. In Highguard, the most common colour on hairs is brown, with all the possible variations it can take, but dark shades of blond are not unseen either. It is usually soft, but with a higher tendency to curls than to flow straight. Both men and women tend to grow it to at least shoulder-length. Low-born women usually keep their hair tied up in buns or some other intricate style, while the high-born are proud to let it loose or at most tie it up in a ponytail when they must. The dark-skinned folk of The Ring have usually coarser hair and for that reason both men and women tend to shave it off or wear it very short. Its hue is usually black or some dark shade of brown. Black women are known for wearing beautiful and colourful silks over their hair, while men sometimes wear tattoos with local motifs to adorn their shaved heads. Eyes Usually black: the dark folk of The Ring, seasiders. Usually blue: highguards. Usually green or light brown: whitestoneans. Usually dark brown: ashlanders. Legends It is said that the people of The Claw have a lightly tanned skin and fair hair that shines like platinum. Of the savages from The Wild Continent, the old tales say very little, except that they look more like beasts than men, covered with hair and displaying long claws on their massive hands and feet.